Comments on: A Tough Thanksgiving (and some hypocrisy)http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241
A place to discuss safety-of-flight issues, procedures, techniques, and judgment.Sun, 27 Nov 2016 09:43:00 +0000hourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.2By: Amazonhttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-192944
Thu, 25 Sep 2014 05:22:13 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-192944It’s amazing designed for me to have a website,
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]]>By: Patricia Andrewshttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-37254
Tue, 13 Dec 2011 04:14:28 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-37254You CAN fix stupid. All of us who are CFIs have an ethical responsibility to look for and correct faulty ADM. Where it cannot be corrected, we have a responsibility to withhold our recommendation.
]]>By: Thomas Boylehttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-37202
Mon, 12 Dec 2011 18:33:07 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-37202I disagree with those who think increased enforcement of the regulations wouldn’t make much difference. It would. It would make dealing with the regulations an even bigger hassle, and make nightmare enforcements even more common. We already have regulations up the wazoo. There are “gotcha” regs almost everywhere – have you read John Yodice’s column?

When considering whether increased enforcement of the regulations would improve flight safety, the regulations that matter are already enforced by the laws of physics, and they ALWAYS catch you. If guaranteed detection and guaranteed punishment aren’t enough, good luck with that 90-day suspension: you’re dealing with someone who either has terrible judgment or who (as many of us have) just plain made a mistake. The fix isn’t to make life more of a hassle for people who aren’t trying to violate the laws of physics.

The fact is, we’re already well past the point where we have to rely on our regulators to exercise some good judgment about which regulations they enforce! (Often that works; sometimes not).

Fuel quantity is a hard problem… Aviation fuel tanks are shallow and flat. Small depth measurement errors translate into big fuel quantity measurement errors in a shallow tank; small tilts of the tank give rise to substantial depth changes at the measurement point (true no matter where you put it); and even if you have quite a bit of fuel in the tank, with some tilting of the tank you can unport the fuel pickup. In a cube-shaped tank, or even better a tall, thin tank, measuring fuel quantity is much easier. Electronics help by avoiding a different problem: the pilot who departs knowing the tank was full, but estimates the contents over time using a “gallons per hour” estimate that is wrong (either completely wrong, or wrong for the power setting or mixture setting). But directly measuring the tank contents is a hard problem.

]]>By: Bob Downshttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-37199
Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:42:00 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-37199As one who knew the pilot of the 690A that ran into the mountains and I flew for the company at one time, I am still grieved beyond belief that he and his three kids died in this inexplicable accident. I did read in a newspaper account that his autistic son was acting up so the father was in the back with him. If true, that explains a lot. But it doesn’t change the fact that night VFR departures, especially in mountainous areas, require as much study as an IFR depature. Probably an IFR flight plan should have been filed or at least a contact with Phoenix approach, but you can get out of Falcon Field VFR safetly and stay beneath the Class B if you plan the exit route. bobd
]]>By: Mikehttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-36949
Sat, 10 Dec 2011 18:06:40 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-36949Thanks Bruce,
Experienced pilots who failed to use good judgement, and failed in observing the regulations, is sad and frustrating.

-Enhanced technology may help with the problem (but could this lead to an over-reliance, in lieu of appropriate preparation and sound decision making.) Terrain doesn’t move from where it has been depicted on the chart. Know where it is, know where you are. Standard equipment facilitates this.
-Increased regulations or stiffer penalties: may not solve the problem as effectively as suggested …
-“If you do not use the safest decision making, comply with the regulations and excercise the best judgement both before and during the flight, … you may die and kill all those on the flight.”

Is there a greater motiviator for observing the regs and using good judgement with the safest, conservative decision-making, than the consequence being death?
Is there a greater enforcer for adequate planning, exercising caution, and operating as safely as possible, than reminding the pilot that they are responsible for the lives of those on board?

By sharing these stories, it raises the awareness of this ultimate consequence. If there are any new requirements to consider, and to avoid complacency, perhaps reading accident reports and the analysis, should be compulsory.

“Learning from past mistakes really is the best way not to become a statistic. [i]Nobody sets out to kill themselves, their passengers or their loved ones.[/i]”

Thank you. Keep up the helpful work providing the educational reminders.

May those who suffered, rest peacefully. Prayers for, and condolences to, their friends and familly. respectfully,

]]>By: Pat Joffrionhttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-36946
Sat, 10 Dec 2011 17:24:45 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-36946As is often the case, a complex problem has a simple solution. Case in point… My personal Thanksgiving daytime flight to KJKA to KHDC in beautiful VFR conditions. Landed at predominantly abandoned Hammond, Louisiana airport. Zero security personnel and gates unlocked. After a long evening with family, we were planning for the 1-hour flight back to Alabama.

First thing I did was drain fuel, then climb the wing to “stick” the tanks. My wife asked, “Why are you doing that? We just landed eight hours ago with plenty of fuel!” I reminded her that the FBO facility and the tarmac were deserted, and that it was possible for someone to siphon fuel right out of our tanks. That didn’t happen, but without checking, if it had occurred, we could have simply run out of fuel during our night flight home. Had the fuel been removed by a thief, our computer still would have displayed over four hours on board. On more than one occasion, I had over twenty gallons stolen from my plane when it was not parked in my hangar.

Now for the solution… It would only take a few visits by FAA personnel to watch pilots preflight their aircraft, and then question the pilot on fuel quantity once he enters the cockpit. Same again for landing airplanes… Have an inspector request a stick gauge reading for remaining fuel on board.

Another step would be to have FAA personnel perform impromptu logbook examinations on all planes landing or preparing to depart in IMC. While this would not stop unqualified pilots from scud running in and out of private small strips, the word would get out soon enough. We all know the two fastest means of communication: Telephone and Tell-A-Pilot.

]]>By: Stefan Wernerhttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-36876
Sat, 10 Dec 2011 03:10:03 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-36876Great article on the biggest issue we all face as pilots. Because we all get the sideways looks when “we make the news”, and we all have to deal with one or more family members that is convinced flying in small airplanes just ain’t safe.

To me the number one item on the list has to be fuel exhaustion. All the things do have a hard to reduce minimum number of occurrences per year in my opinion. We can get is lower with lots of investment in training and equipment but never down to zero.

However none of us should ever run out of fuel, unless we have a major mechanical problem that siphons fuel overboard in flight or someone shot 3″ holes in our tanks.
Do electronics help ..partially. The electronics in the car someone mentioned do give you a miles remaining number…..to a point. Then it simply turns off. Because the manufacturers want to avoid someone claiming the car said such and such and I ended up short…at the side of the road.
The best systems can measure quantity in the tank with weight cells so there is no mistake to be made entering the fuel data, but a good pilot always has a backup plan….and that is as old as flying powered aircraft. How much does it burn in an hour and how much is in there. At that point all you need s a watch and possibly a calculator.

I was attending a seminar not too long ago themed “what went wrong” and in one of the interludes the FAAST rep related a story of her CFI days when she ran a Warrior out of gas on an instructional flight because she “forgot” to check the fuel before setting of. And she related it with way too much laughter for my taste.

I almost never like punishment… But I think a mandatory 6 month suspension if you do run out of gas should be a really good deterrent.

However, ramp checking a Part91 VFR flight is only marginally helpful because you can legally arrive with less than 30/45 minutes in your tanks…you just need to be able to prove that you planned with due diligence and mother nature simply did not comply with the forecast….remember the flight plan has to show you arriving with that reserve….not the actual flight.

Happy Flying…and for heavens sake check the fuel and land short if in doubt. It really does not take that long to fill up.

Stefan

]]>By: Kenhttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-36842
Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:34:01 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-36842There are enough rules and enough training. Unfortunately, the pilots that need it the most don’t take it. While these types of events are a tragedy, the consequences of trying to eliminate them will forever change general aviation. I for one am not willing to pay the price. We all know the risks – we all accept them.
]]>By: Brian Lynchhttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-36828
Fri, 09 Dec 2011 16:54:32 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-36828Although I fly for a living I do, on occasion, fly a small airplane so that my family can experience the joy of flying. That having been said, the difference between the planning/preparation I complete in my flying job and the preparation I witness others doing, or not doing, when flying for leisure is staggering. The ‘kick the tires and light the fire’ mentality seems to prevail in the small plane world. And efforts to push others towards a more thorough planning process usually meets with resistance – an ‘aviation libertarian’ mentality, if you will.
]]>By: Mike Schaffrinnahttp://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241&cpage=1#comment-36821
Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:58:01 +0000http://blog.aopa.org/leadingedge/?p=2241#comment-36821More training or more rules may seem like the solution but will not change the outcome. People are human and will make bad decisions. From an engineering perspective the answer is to develop systems that make it more difficult for the human GA Pilot to make an error. Just like the low fuel light in a car, technology can be leveraged to provide advanced warning and enhance the human interface between man and machine.
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